Episode 11: Drowned by a Duck: Negative Numbers and Gothic Storytelling in "Gloom"

Looking for a portable, fast-playing game that develops story-telling, arithmetic skills, and strategic thinking? Then "Gloom" is the answer. This week, Chris and Laura discuss this tabletop card game from Atlas Games and dive into game play, skills development, and common pitfalls in game play to be aware of. If you or your children love Victorian fiction, Edward Gorey, or A Series of Unfortunate Events, this might be up your alley.

 

Recommended  Games:

 

Gloom - The core game. This is all you need to get started.

Gloom Expansion Decks - If you love the core game, you can buy these individually or look for one of the bundled sets on Amazon. Expansions include Unhappy Homes, Unwelcome Guests, Unquiet Dead, and Unfortunate Expeditions. 

Cthulu Gloom - Based on H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulu Mythos, this game uses the core rules but alternate characters and events inspired by the classic tales of horror. Probably best to reserve for older high-schoolers. There is also an expansion deck, Unpleasant Dreams. 

Fairytale Gloom - This would be an excellent entry point for younger children. Fairytales can be dark. Perhaps Rapunzel Cried Wolf One Time Too Many. Will your characters live Unhappily Ever After?

Munchkin Gloom - Based on the Munchkin series of card games from Steve Jackson games, this version uses a whimsical cartoon illustrations set in the pseudo-medieval world ubiquitous to fantasy roleplaying games. 

Rory's Story Cubes - A dice-based story telling game from Zygomatic. There are also numerous variant sets. 

Lord of the Rings Board Game - This is the version from 2000 from Fantasy Flight Games. Fun, cooperative, and fast paced. Also, unfortunately, out of print, but you can find copies on Amazon or Ebay in the used market.

 

Recommended Reading:

 

A Series of Unfortunate Events - Lemony Snicket's wildly popular saga of the Baudelaire children and their wicked uncle, Count Olaf, appropriately in 13 parts. 

Tales of Edgar Allen Poe - Atmospheric, gloomy, relentless. Both his poetry and tales of horror rely on a sense of growing dread and the reality that the worst things to be feared are found in the human heart. Or possibly in a raven that won't shut up. 

The Works of Edward Gorey - Especially his illustrations for Hillaire Belloc's Cautionary Tales for Children, but also his delightful story The Lavender Leotard, produced for the New York City Ballet. 

Karen Elizabeth Gordon - I mean, they're books for building vocabulary, improving grammatical usage, or punctuating with precision. And yet they're also decadent dives into Victorian excess, populated by gargoyles, mastodons, and murderous debutantes. I highly recommend The Deluxe Transitive Vampire, The New Well-Tempered Sentence, The Disheveled Dictionary, Out of the Loud Hound of Darkness, and Torn Wings and Faux Pas. 

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place - (Link goes to the Kindle bundle of all 6 books.)The classic 19th century trope: a young, orphaned governess is brought to a mysterious manor to tutor the young wards of a nobleman; then the mysteries begin. Were the children raised by wolves? Is the family of the nobleman cursed? What really happened to the governess' own family? And why does her mentor insist she dye her hair dull black? Amidst useful aphorisms and classic poetry, these delightful tales will introduce children to 19th century literature and poetry and are a perfect complement to Gloom's themes.

 

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Intro and Outro Music:

"Crunk Knight" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/